


Day Two Hundred Seventy-Seven || Plastic Wrap

by 365daysofsasuhina



Series: 365 Days of SasuHina 2019 [277]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-06
Updated: 2019-10-06
Packaged: 2020-11-25 20:49:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20918408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/365daysofsasuhina/pseuds/365daysofsasuhina
Summary: Sure, working in a deli right out of high school isn't glamorous, but...you do what you have to. At least SOMEONE understands.





	Day Two Hundred Seventy-Seven || Plastic Wrap

Another day...another shift at work.

In all actuality, Hinata doesn’t _hate_ her job...it’s just...well, not what she expected to be doing. She had such grandiose plans of going to college, getting a degree in education, and teaching a class of little kiddos before settling down and having a few of her own with...someone. Back in high school her dreamboat was, well...sunk. So that part of her plan was a work in progress.

But then her entrance exams for her school of choice went...horribly wrong. Struck by severe anxiety, Hinata completely bombed them. Ashamed, she didn’t even bother retaking them, and instead opted to ‘take a year off’ and see where life took her.

To her honest surprise, her father let her live at home during said year to find herself. And Hinata busted her _butt_ at the local grocery store working to save up enough for what she knew would be her eventual getting kicked out and moving someplace on her own. And just as she predicted, Hiashi got fed up with her ‘lack of direction’ after that first year, and...she was left to wing it.

By some grace, she actually managed to get a decent roommate. Her cousin’s girlfriend was looking to move off-campus while getting a degree in sports medicine, and agreed to halve the costs with Hinata to make things easier on them both. Then Neji decided to move in, and...it’s actually worked really well!

...despite...constantly feeling like a third wheel to their relationship. But Neji assures her time and time again that they enjoy her company, and want to help ensure she doesn’t have to go it alone.

...of course, that’s going to be a little _questionable_ once they both graduate and need to move.

For now, however...Hinata’s just taking life one day at a time. Back in the deli section of the grocery store, she’s part of the team that makes...well, all the deli food. Her own speciality is the sandwiches, and she’s gotten really good at it! She can whip up just about anything in a flash, packaging it neatly in plastic wrap and filling up the displays, or even making them to order as people browse the cases. She’s gotten oddly proud of herself, being marked as a model employee.

Sometimes some of the older staff ask her about her plans, given her young age, and she just...shrugs.

“I like it here,” she tells them. “It’s not...g-glamorous, but I enjoy it. And...I’m not sure the whole ‘college’ thing is really, um...my speed.”

And after a little while, she got more than used to the locals pestering her about it, too. It helped that her old theater club instructor Kurenai (with a new family of her own) was supportive. Add in Neji and Tenten’s help, and she got over the stigma of choosing work over schooling within just a few months. Sure, every once in a while she’ll get a little...melancholy about it. Mostly whenever on social media, seeing all the posts from her friends her age doing more ‘typical’ things. Attending classes or sports games, getting significant others, and just...other milestones Hinata herself has yet to reach.

“Life isn’t a race,” Kurenai had told her once, stopping in to have lunch with her old student one day. “If anything, it’s just the opposite. It isn’t about rushing from point a, to b, all the way to z. Take time to wander, meander...you’ll find those milestones at your own pace, if you even want to. Your life is _your_ journey. So long as you’re happy and healthy...who’s to say you’re doing your own thing wrong, hm?”

That conversation had left a spring in Hinata’s step for a good long while, and as time passed, she found a sort of...peace in her work. Not to say she’d _totally_ given up on things changing or improving over time. But until she figured out what that would be, well...she was just fine doing things _her_ way.

“Hinata! We need more turkey and swiss, please!”

“On it!” Collecting the proper ingredients to her work station, Hinata gets to crafting, lost in the rhythm and pattern of her work. It’s the lunch hour, so anyone making their way through the store tends to gravitate toward things ready-made, able to just pick it up and take it home to eat. The display cases are kept full, and the smells of fresh food fill the air.

Once her set is done, Hinata loads them into the cases, arranging them just so to try and make them any degree more appealing to those walking by.

“...Hinata?”

Stacking the last sandwich, Hinata straightens and looks to the inquisitive tone, blinking. And then it hits her. “...oh! Sasuke…?”

Standing on the other side of the case is indeed Sasuke Uchiha, an old classmate. Hands buried in his jacket pockets, he looks just as surprised to see her here. “Uh...yeah. I...didn’t know you were working here.”

Giving a quick, sheepish smile (and preparing for the inevitable questions), Hinata replies, “Yeah, um...I-I’ve been here over two years now!”

“...huh. Surprised I didn’t notice you earlier, then. Guess I’m just never in the right place at the right time.”

There’s a pause, and...he doesn’t press anything else. Just sort of...stands there.

A bit lurching in the quiet, Hinata eventually offers, “So, um...did you...want something?”

“Yeah, uh…” He glances over the selections. “...you don’t happen to do, like...BLTs, do you?”

That earns another blink. “Not for the regulars, but I can make you one, sure! We do custom ones, too. So it’s no trouble! Anything else you want on it…?”

“Just some mayo, I guess. With rye bread, if that’s okay.”

“Sure! Do you want it...toasted, or anything?”

“You can do that?”

“Yeah!”

“...okay, yeah - sure. Thanks.”

Humming to herself, Hinata goes about her routine, quickly arranging everything on the requested rye bread. For a moment, she even forgets who she’s making it for, absorbed in the process until the finished sandwich is finished. Quick hands get it wrapped in a jiffy, and she hands it over. “There you go.”

“...thanks. You work here every day?”

“Every day but Sunday and Monday, yeah!”

“Huh...cool. I thought about getting a Summer job this year, but nothing ever panned out.”

Hinata’s head tilts. “...well, next time let me know, and I’ll see if maybe we have any openings here! If...if you want, that is. It’s a pretty nice place to work, in m-my opinion. Everyone’s fairly friendly! There’s...well, there’s _some_ sour grapes, but they’re easy enough to avoid.”

“Yeah, okay. I’ll keep that in mind. School’s been kicking my butt, but it’d be nice to get a little spending money in the off months.”

“You’re, um...you’re going to the local uni here…?”

Sasuke nods, still holding his sandwich. “Yeah...haven’t picked a major yet, and it’s driving my dad nuts. I just dunno what I want to do yet...started out in some business courses, but it just didn’t feel right.”

“Oh...yeah, that can be t-tough. I know a lot of our classmates ended up changing their minds after this past year. Sakura gave up on dance and is going into nursing! So...you never really know what will end up c-clicking, sometimes.”

Surprise lifts his brows a bit. “Huh...didn’t hear that. I don’t really...talk to a lot of our old classmates.”

“Honestly, I don’t either...I mostly just sort of lurk,” Hinata admits, looking a little sheepish. “It’s...a bit hard to keep up with social media sometimes...you know?”

“Yeah...all you ever see is what people _want_ you to see. It’s why I gave most of it up. It’s not as genuine as you think. That and I got tired of all the gag-me relationship drama everywhere, and pictures...it’s like people are only on there to brag, or complain. Not my scene.”

That actually gets her to perk up a bit. “E-exactly! It’s just...n-not any fun. At least...not really.”

The subject idles for a moment before Sasuke asks, “So...you like working here?”

“I do. I don’t know if it’s, um...a career, but…” Her shoulders hunch ever so slightly. “...it’s just...where I am for now.”

“Hey, whatever works, you know? No judgement here.”

“...thanks. Not everyone is so, um...understanding.”

“Yeah, all that status quo crap. The world needs deli workers just like it needs doctors and lawyers and engineers. Don’t sweat it, Hinata.”

A bit surprised, Hinata can’t help but go a bit pink, feeling rather...reassured. “...yeah, I...I guess you’re right.”

A short alarm then rings, and Sasuke pulls out his phone. “Ah, crap...I gotta go. But hey, thanks for the sandwich. I’ll have to make a habit of it.”

“O...okay! Any time!” Brightening, Hinata waves as he takes his leave, feeling oddly...giddy. It’s been quite some time since she’s talked to an old classmate, and...even longer since it went so well. Mood bolstered, she just calls out a ‘Got it!’ when her next batch is ordered.

...she’s already looking forward to seeing him again.

**Author's Note:**

> So this is...super random cuz I was LOST with this prompt xD It's just so...random, and yet specific, so...hopefully this is still fun to read? lol
> 
> Just a little modern stuff with a...well, I guess she's not a drop-out, but...a college-less Hinata, and directionless Sasuke. He gets it. Or at least I think he would. I dunno, I'm very tired and this prompt was weird so who knows if any of this made sense, but...I tried xD
> 
> On that note though, I reallllly need some sleep, so I'll sign off - thanks for reading~


End file.
